A Trip For Three
by Alicia Weasley
Summary: Hermione wins a contest to be on a game show, and brings Ron and Harry along. This is my second fanfic posted that has a point. Chapter 3 up now! Just in time for Christmas!
1. Chapter 1: The Sweepstakes

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except for Carlton Cleets! And also maybe Magical Healthcare.

Chapter 1

Hermione sat in her bedroom, anxiously looking out of the window.  She had entered in a Muggle contest, and the results were to return today. 

"Oh please, please, please…" she said to herself, drumming her fingers on her desk.

          _'This is pointless. I should do something to pass the time,' _she thought to herself.

          She got up and dug through her trunk. She pulled out her Game Boy.

          '_Three levels away from the mothership, and I still can't concentrate. Maybe I should study or something.' _She thought.

          She pulled out Magical Healthcare: Cure Curses and Heal Hexes, Volume V_, _and began to read.__

_'My God, how boring. Who wants to know 6 remedies for the pineapple hex?' _she thought.

          She heard a faint tapping on the window.

          "Yes!" she exclaimed. 

          She went to the window and let the scrawny post owl in. Her mum had given it to her for her birthday. The owl yelped as she hastily shut the cage door on the poor thing's leg.  

          "Sorry," she murmured as she ripped open the envelope.

NEW! 

Carlton Cleets's quick money earning program!

Fix up old homes and sell them for more!

Profits reported up to TWO THOUSAND GALLEONS!

Order now!

"Arrrrgh!!" she screamed, as she tore the letter into _two thousand pieces. _"How could I have been so stupid? It wouldn't come by _owl…"_

"Honey?" she heard her mother shout up the stairs.

"Yes, Mother…" she half-sighed.

When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she was greeted with a concerned look from her mum. 

"'Mione, is everything alright? I heard you yell," she asked.

"It's alright, Mum," Hermione answered. "I just got another one of those Carlton Cleets things in the mail. I've been getting those ever since the incident with-"

"Oh!" Her mum interrupted. "In the mail! That reminds me. You got this today." She handed Hermione a neat white envelope.

Hermione ran back up to her room and tore open the envelope. _'You selfish git, you forgot to tell your mum thanks,' _the nasty little voice inside her head said. 

"Oh, shut up," she replied, and started reading.

Dear Miss Granger,

          You have been entered in our sweepstakes to attend and be a contestant on High Stakes Trivia. You are… a winner! Please invite two (2) of your friends to participate in the show also. Attached are two (2) forms on which the other participants will enter their information. The show will be on Tuesday, June 8th, at 6:30 PM. Please return the attached forms by Friday, May 30th. 

          Sincerely,

                   Robert Gohort

"Yes, yes, yes!!" Hermione screamed as she jumped up and down. "I'm gonna be on the sho-ow, I'm gonna be on the sho-ow!" She sang, and she danced on her bed.

She raced down the stairs and hugged her mum, making her spill hot gravy all over the stove. 

"Mum! I won! I won!!" she screamed.

"That's great dear…" She began, but Hermione had already run off to tell her dad.

          Hermione sat down at her desk. She was still overly excited, but she calmed down enough to hold her quill.

          '_I guess I'll have to send a letter to Dumbledore in order to get Harry, so I guess I'll write Ron's first.' _She thought.

Dear Ron,

          I won my sweepstakes! My letter said that I could invite two friends to be on the show with me. It's a television show. A television is a little box that has moving pictures and is run by electricity. Well, never mind, I'll explain it when you get here. You're coming. You know that, right? You're coming whether you like it or not. You might as well spend the rest of the summer holidays here, too. I need to send a letter to Dumbledore asking him if it's okay for Harry to come, too. My dad wasn't too thrilled with having two boys over for the whole summer, but he agreed, only because it was you two. If you can come, please come on the sixth. We would come to get you, but I don't think we could find our way. And besides, your neighbours wouldn't be to happy if a rusty old Muggle car drove up in your… erm… yard. If the Dursleys don't let Harry come, can you get Fred or George to get him? He's definitely coming, too. Well, I guess that's all. See you on the sixth!

                Hermione 

P.S.- Hope you're having a good holiday so far!

          '_Good enough,' _she thought. She folded the letter and tied it to her owl's leg. 

          "Give this to Ron, okay?" 

          The owl squawked as a reply and flew out the open window.

          Hermione proceeded to write a letter to Dumbledore.

(A/n: Sorry this chapter doesn't really have a point, but it's just an introduction. I have half of chapter two written, and it will be up soon. Please check back often. It will most likely be up by Christmas! Happy holidays, guys!)  



	2. Chapter 2: Harry and Ron's Arrival

Chapter 2

          "'Mione! Your little friends are here!" Hermione woke up to her mother's voice. She jumped out of bed and ran to her door. 

          "Okay, Mum! I'll be down in a second!" she called.

          She changed her clothes and combed her hair in five minutes flat. She raced down the stairs and hugged Ron and Harry both.

          "Err… hi, Hermione." Ron said, choked by Hermione's arms.

          "Hi," Harry said. "How err… are you?" 

          "Hello, boys!" Mrs. Granger said.

          Ron and Harry waved.

          "Hi," they said in unison.

          Ten minutes into the boys' parental torture, Hermione said, "Um… why don't I show Harry and Ron to their rooms?"

          She turned around and headed up the stairs, closely followed bye Ron and Harry.

          "Thanks, Hermione," Harry said, when they got to her room.

          "Yeah, that was… _weird_." Ron said, wincing at the pain in his ribs from being hugged by Mrs. Granger.

          "Why are they so…" Harry started.

          "Affectionate?" Hermione laughed. "I guess my mum just… was so thrilled with me having friends over…" she looked down at the floor.

          "Well, er…" Ron said, giving Harry a meaningful look over Hermione. "Maybe we should… get unpacked."

          "Yeah," Harry mumbled.

          "Wait! Er, Hermione? Where are is our room?" Ron asked.

          "Oh!" Hermione laughed. "I'll show you."

          "This room is very…" Harry began, standing in the doorway.

          "_Girly!"_ Ron finished, exasperated.

          The room was covered from floor to ceiling in pink flowers and lace. It had two dainty little twin beds, covered in pink quilts trimmed in lace. The windows were decorated with long draperies sprinkled with little pink flowers. On the floor was a little pink rug.

          "Yes, well…" Hermione tried to hold back a smile, but it was futile. "My mum's mum owned this suite, then her mum before her. It's sort of an heirloom." 

          "Well, I guess it will… do…" Harry said, blushing.

          "So… which bed do you want, Harry?" Ron said, still staring at the vase full of pink roses and baby's breath on the dresser. 

          "Why do they want to know our great aunt's maiden name?" Ron asked Hermione, filling out his application form. 

          "I don't know, just write it." Hermione said.

          "But I don't know it! Everyone just called her 'Shoe'."

          "Shoe?" Harry and Hermione asked in unison.

          "Yes. Please don't ask." Ron snickered.

          "Well then, just pretend you don't have a great aunt. Put down 'n/a'."

          "Right." Ron filled out a couple more blanks and, "Done!"

          "Good. Let me show you the telly," she said with a smile.

          "No, Ron, that's the antenna," Harry said.

          "But… how do the people get through that little string to the box?"

          "Don't try to understand it, Ron. Just remember it." Hermione sighed. "Now, let's watch the show we'll be on."  She found the remote, and turned the telly to channel five.

          "Now what's that thing?" Ron pointed at the remote.

          "Just watch the show, Ron," Harry said.

          They shifted their attention to the television, and they saw the announcer, dressed up in flashy clothes, say, "And now, we're back to Great Britain's favourite game show…"

          "High…Stakes…Trivia!!" the audience yelled.

          Two teams of three people were sitting in very comfy-looking chairs, beaming.

          "And our first question of round two is…" the announcer started, while consulting a little card. "What are the only three words in the English language that cannot be rhymed?"

          One of the contestants, who had blue hair by the way, (This got a remark from Ron- "How did that Muggle get blue hair?") stood up suddenly as he rang her buzzer.

          "Orange, purple and silver!"

          "Great job, you are correct!" said the announcer. "Our next question is… what are the fabled witches said to ride on?"

          "What?! How simple! What's wrong with these people?" Ron interjected. 

          "Ron, it's a _Muggle_ show," Harry said.

          "Oh. Right."

          A young woman, with normal hair this time, buzzed in.

          "That would be broomsticks!" she said with a grin.

          After about 10 more questions, the announcer stated that the next round would be the "Physical Challenge" round. He was walking gingerly around the outside of a large slime pit.

          "First, our contestants will trudge through this pit," he told the audience. "Then, climb over this mountain," he said, pointing to a miniature rocky cliff face. "Then, crawl through this elastic jungle," he said, pointing to a large area with what looked like long rubber bands stretched in every way. "Then, they must go back up to the starting point, and ring their bell," he announced, indicating a little gong. "Whatever rings their bell first, wins 200 points. Any questions?" Silence. "Okay then, let's play!"

          The three contestants sloshed quickly through the slime, Blue Hair Lady in the lead, and then scaled the little mountain. Normal Hair Lady passed Blue Hair Lady in the "Elastic Jungle" and went back through. But another man had already rang his bell by the time she got to hers.

           "My, this is rather exciting, huh?"  Ron said, his eyes stuck on the television.

          "Welcome, Ron, to the fantastic world of Muggle entertainment," Harry said with mock regality.

          "Wait until I show him my PlayStation2," Hermione laughed.

          "You have a PS2?" Harry said, astonished.

          "Yeah, it's-" Hermione started.

          "Shh! They're about to announce the winners!" Ron said.

          The three turned their attention to the telly, and the winner is…

          "The Purple Team!" the announcer exclaimed. Blue Hair Woman, who was now identified as the captain of the purple team, made her way to where the announcer was standing.

          "You win…" the announcer started, in a drum-roll-like voice.

          "Two… thousand… dollars!!" the audience blared.

          "Wow! Two thousand dollars? That's enough to buy… er… hmmm… well… it sounds like a lot," Ron said.

          "Yeah, it's probably enough to buy maybe… 3 Firebolts?"

          "Excellent! One for each of us!" Ron exclaimed.

          "Honestly, Ron. As if I would buy one of those," Hermione scoffed.

          "And I've already got… one…" Harry turned away, not wanting to make Ron feel bad. But he seemed not to be offended.

          "Alright then," Ron said with a shrug. "A Firebolt for me, maybe one of those PlaySituation things for Harry, and… gee… I have no clue what to get Hermione…" Ron said with sarcasm.

          "Oh, stuff it, Ron." Hermione said.

          "Okay, okay, don't go ballistic," Ron said teasingly.

          Harry yawned. "Maybe I'll go to bed. I'll leave you two kiddies alone," Harry laughed.

          At that, Hermione and Ron sprang up from the couch and said a jumble of "good nights" and "sweet dreams" and ran off to their rooms, leaving Harry behind. Harry followed after Ron, shaking his head and smiling.


	3. Chapter 3: Behind the Names

Chapter 3

          "We'll be leaving in about two hours," Mrs. Granger told Hermione.  "So be ready."

          "Alright, Mum." 

          Hermione ran up to Harry and Ron's bedroom door and knocked.     "Wake up, guys. We'll be leaving in two hours," she called.

          She received some mumbles as an answer.

          "Good morning to you, too." She said sarcastically. "My mum's making breakfast. Come on… I think it's chocolate chip pancakes."

          She heard some fast rustling of quilts, and the door sprang open. Ron stood in the doorway, clad in pajamas with golden snitches on them.

          "Nice… erm… PJ's…" Hermione said, trying to hold back a laugh.

          Ron turned bright red. "Yes. Well… they were Percy's…" he muttered. "I'll go wash up." 

          Once the trio had eaten their breakfast, they still had about an hour to kill.

          "So, Hermione, how about that PlayStation? What games do you have?" Harry asked.

          "Probably ones that you would think are stupid," she said.

          After a nice round of Glover and a great series of questions from Ron, they decided to move on to the computer.

          "Okay, Ron, this is a com-put-er. It runs on e-lec-tric-ity." Hermione said slowly. 

          "Stop it, you're making me feel stupid," he protested.

          Hermione and Harry smirked at him.

          "What?" 

(A/n: okay, so that was a little mean…)

          "Anyway…" Hermione said and turned the computer on.

          "Ahhh! Is- is something wrong?"

          "No, Ron. It's supposed to make that sound."

          "What is that thing? A-a… wand?"

          "It's the mouse pointer, Ron. I have a magic theme."

          "Cool! I wish I had a computer. Dudley threw his out the window."

          "Well, maybe you can buy one with the money you win."

          "If we win."

          "We will! We've got Hermione!"

          "Once again Ron, stuff it."

          Hermione got online and went to a name meanings website.

          "Ronald… Weasley…" she mumbled as she typed in his name.

"Why are we doing this?" Ron asked.

"Because it's interesting."

"Interesting for who?"

"I heard that." 

"Excellent! My name means advice and ruler! You're right, Hermione, this is interesting."

          "I don't know who would get good advice for you…" Hermione mumbled.

          "Ugh! One who has the characteristics of a weasel… well, maybe for Fred and George…"

          "Hermione… Granger…"   

          "Wow Hermione, a goddess? Greek legend…"

          "Too bad 'Granger's not as good."

          "Haha! A farm stewardess!"

          "Hermione: The Legendary Farm Stewardess."

          "Shut it, Ron. I won't be a farm stewardess for long. When I get married, my last name might mean 'regal' and 'majestic'. But you'll be stuck with the characteristics of a weasel for the rest of your life. Harry… Potter…"

"Wow! Power… and ruler? Looks like we'll both be dictators, Ron. " 

          "Well I guess that makes sense."

          "Haha! 'One who works with clay or pots.'"

          "Belt up, Ron."

          "Wow! Look, Harry! They've got a link…to your own website!"

          "Gee, I didn't know I had one of those."

          "Look at this, Harry! I guess us Muggle-borns have put together a whole site for you!"

          "Look! You can play quidditch! And… and… read the Daily Prophet!" Ron said, amazed.

          Not wanting to waste her time playing quidditch online, she clicked on the Daily Prophet link.

          "Hey… this isn't… right… what issue is this?" Ron demanded.

          "Look, it says something about a movie trailer…" Hermione bit her lip and clicked on the link.

          "Cool, Diagon Alley."

          "Shh! Look! It's you, Harry! In our first year! Look! There's me! And… Ron!"

          "And all the professors… and Neville! Haha!"

          Harry and Ron couldn't help but laugh as they watched Neville fly haphazardly off into the distance.

          "But… but… how did… you can't have…" Hermione stuttered.

          "What?"

          "The only way to get this on tape in to record it with a camera. And… you can't use Muggle devices on Hogwarts grounds…"

          "What's a camera?"

          "Ron! This is serious!"

          "So am I!"

          "How did they get this on tape?!" Hermione demanded.

          "Maybe they… hmmm… maybe we should just leave this alone, Hermione," Harry said, sounding extremely worried.

          "Well…"

          "Hermione! We're leaving! Are you ready?" They heard Mr. Granger's voice from downstairs.

          "Yeah, dad! Coming!"

          Harry and Ron grabbed their suitcases and went out to the car. 

(A/n: Yay! Chapter 3! Already! Happy Christmas, people!)


End file.
